


tea sets and empty chairs

by inquisitor_tohru



Category: Alice In Wonderland - Lewis Carroll
Genre: Cuddling & Snuggling, Dorks in Love, Established Relationship, Implied Period-Typical Attitudes Towards Mental Health Issues, Interspecies Relationship(s), M/M, Mental Instability, Tea Parties, Time Loop
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-05
Updated: 2020-08-05
Packaged: 2021-03-06 00:00:48
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 419
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25733965
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/inquisitor_tohru/pseuds/inquisitor_tohru
Summary: It was, forever and always, six o' clock.
Relationships: Mad Hatter/March Hare (Alice in Wonderland)
Comments: 8
Kudos: 13
Collections: The Prince Regent's Birthday Regency/Victorian Flash Exchange





	tea sets and empty chairs

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Small_Hobbit](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Small_Hobbit/gifts).



They didn't call him mad because he fell in love with a hare called Haigha, though there was a high chance that fact didn't help his case. But who  _ wouldn't _ be driven to madness in such a situation? If it hadn't been the mercury or the relentless work hours, then surely it would have been their time in the Pauper Lunatic Asylum, though at least they'd let him keep making his hats. Then the Queen of Hearts had wanted a song  _ (a song!)  _ from him and the rest was history. Except that it wasn't, really, because it was, forever and always, six o' clock.

The March Hare was the only one who stayed. The Dormouse came and went, as guests were free to do. He suspected that Haigha was already half-mad by the time he made their acquaintance, but he appreciated a little excitement and eccentricity amongst the monotony of teacup after teacup after teacup-

Actually, it was usually only one teacup. After sixty seconds, it was six o' clock again, and the tea was back in the teapot. At least they never had to worry about refills. Sometimes he and Haigha amused themselves by seeing how many cups they could quaff in a minute, or how many little cucumber sandwiches they could eat. This time they did neither, simply taking comfort in one another's arms (or forelegs, he supposed) as they shared two leisurely cups of tea. Occasionally he felt Haigha's long ears twitch, knocking his hat askew, and nuzzled against his soft fur. He would have been happy to fall asleep like this, with whiskers and straw tickling his forehead as his hat toppled forwards onto the table. But that didn't matter - soon everything would be back in its place.

"Haigha," he slurred, eyelids growing heavier by the second, "my dearest friend, have I ever told you how very much I-"

When his eyes opened, he was at the head of the table again, surrounded by tea sets and empty chairs. Empty, that is except for the seat to his left. Haigha's ears moved in a way that did not resemble a smile, but over hundreds and thousands of minutes had become recognisable as an equivalent gesture.

"Never and always," Haigha replied, adjusting the straw around his ears. "Another cup of tea, my love?" Perhaps he ought to have hated tea by now but, with a rare smile, the Hatter raised his chipped teacup. For even now, he could never turn down a good cup of tea.


End file.
